Some substantial achievements are expected to be made at the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP16), though a legally-binding treaty might be difficult to reach, Venessa Perez-Cirera, director of the World Widelife Fund (WWF) Mexico climate change program, said in an interview with Xinhua on Sunday.

The conference, to be held in Cancun, a resort city on Mexico's Caribbean coast from Nov. 29 to Dec. 10, will gather leaders or their representatives from some 180 countries to discuss the issues of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

"There are different topics and issues to be discussed at Cancun conference such as green technology transfer and additional financing for poor nations," she said.

At present, climate change has become an important challenge that hinders the existence and development of human beings. Fighting climate change is not only the government's responsibility but that of companies and the people, therefore legislation is important, Perez-Cirera said.

"If the government says it is a state policy, the companies will react to it. They can change their products so the consumers can change their habits. We should stress that we are in the danger of having irreversible dangerous environmental changes," she said.

According to her, the international community had readjusted its expectation for the Cancun conference, after the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) last year failed to reach any legally-binding treaty for the years beyond 2012.

She called on the participants of the meeting to show solidarity and sincerity, saying such strategies as that of "I do not show my card until you show yours first" would lead nowhere.

She recognized China's emission reduction efforts and called on China, the biggest developing country, to play an important role at the conference.

(Xinhua News Agency November 22, 2010)